Col’s Chat – Locals through my Lens – Michelle Beesley

Col’s Chat –

Locals through my Lens

Michelle Beesley 

‘Always a bookworm and always writing’, these are the first words Michelle says as we sit down for our coffee and chat. “The dream was always there, but when I was young, you became a teacher or a nurse, and I went down the teacher path, first at Deception Bay and then here in The Gap.” 

Despite penning children’s books and short stories when her kids were young, Michelle had no luck with publication. Then, “I went along to a romance writer’s event at Ashgrove library and listened to Amy Andrews speak. She was amazing and said that if we loved writing so much, we should form a writer’s group, which we did, and it lasted for over 12 years. This opened doors for us, and in my case, I was approached to write for a blog called She Brisbane, run by writer and journalist, Helen Goltz.” 

Asked by Helen what stories she had; Michelle drew upon a trip to Africa. “I wrote about how Africa had changed my life, and that led to interviews, reviews and many other fascinating writing projects.” In the meantime, chapters of her own romance novel were coming together.  “I also joined the Romance Writers of Australia, which is wonderful for aspiring romance writers, and I gathered so much knowledge.” 

After over 20 visits to France, Michelle was inextricably drawn to the timeless romance of La Republique. After some rewrites, Michelle got a contract offer from Serenade Publishing on the Sunshine Coast. “The publisher said, ‘I love history and especially romance set in France. Here’s your contract if you want it.’” 

It Happened in Paris hit the bookshelves in 2023.  “I waited until after I’d stopped teaching, as the steamy nature of the story might have raised some eyebrows. And, in July my latest book, Chateau of Love was released.  I am very proud of this one because I feel I have come so far as a writer. The two books are part of the series called French Kiss: people love to know what happens next.” 

Michelle grew up surrounded by literature, from Enid Blyton to the classics. It formed a broad base for both her writing and reading. “When I’m writing romance I can’t read romance, so enjoy women’s fiction, or crime, but I always find myself editing as I read, ‘I would have done that differently, too many commas etc.’ Ironically, I find editing the hardest part of my own work, and when you get to the end you always think that there must be one more thing I should change.” 

AI is all the talk at the moment, with some commentators saying it’s great, because writing is not fun. So where does Michelle stand on the debate, “For me writing is a compulsion, I can’t not write. Writing helps me solve problems, allows me to help people. Many authors are having their entire catalogue sucked up by AI with not a cent paid to them. For young budding writers I would say, embrace the process and write what you know or love. It will always have value, and AI can’t replace your unique writing voice.” 

With grandchildren now, Michelle is going to take some time to return to children’s writing. “I’m also writing the third in the French Kiss series, the name of which will be…, hmh, that’s yet to be revealed.” 

To be the first to know, follow Michelle at michellebeesley.com or @michellebeesley_writer. 

Author and photographer: Colin Bushell / Colin Bushell Photography